


Bentober 2019: Shine

by EnchantressEmily



Series: Bentober 2019 [1]
Category: Widdershins (Webcomic)
Genre: Bentober Challenge, Gen, Prompt Fill, Self-Esteem Issues, Snippets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:15:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26761951
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EnchantressEmily/pseuds/EnchantressEmily
Summary: Ben realizes he actually does shine in his own way, if a little more... literally than he expected.
Series: Bentober 2019 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1952116
Kudos: 10
Collections: Widdershins Fanworks Month Pieces





	Bentober 2019: Shine

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally [posted on Tumblr](https://enchantress-emily.tumblr.com/post/188255226865/bentober-day-10-shine) in October 2019 for the Bentober fandom challenge.  
> Prompt: Shine

“Everyone shines in their own way. You just have to find out what your way is.”

Ben had always hated that phrase. His grandmother used to try to comfort him with it when he was upset about being bested, yet again, by Blake and Bryony; she meant well, but he could never bring himself to believe her. Maybe some people shone, but others – him, for instance – were drab and dull, plodding through life while the more fortunate ones flashed past overhead like shooting stars.

In any case, what could he possibly shine at? His magical ability was mediocre at best; he did well in areas that required pure scholarship, but only by relentless studying; and the less said about his social interactions, the better.

Living with Wolfe and O’Malley had done nothing to dispel this feeling. Wolfe shone effortlessly at nearly everything, and while O’Malley’s rough exterior was deceiving at first glance, he used his extraordinary abilities as casually as he might light a cigarette. 

It wasn’t until after Voss’s nearly disastrous party, as Ben lay in bed trying to fall asleep, that he remembered that glimpse of himself in the mirror – face, clothing, and disconcerting new haircut all in shades of grey, but a spiky, colorful glow surrounding him like the light of a candle.

Hours of nervous tension and adrenaline caught up with him, and he rolled over to muffle his half-hysterical laughter in the pillow. All this time he had been shining in the most literal way possible, and only O’Malley had known.


End file.
